Abstract

I desire to bring to the notice of the Fellows of the RoyalSociety to-night the advisability of protecting the owls ofTasmania, inasmuch as they are the most useful vermin killersof any known family of birds, while at the same timeno birds are more persecuted by well-meaning people through,ignorance of their true mode of life and also by pot-hunters insearch of so-called sport. It is thought by the majority ofpeople that owls destroy birds to a great extent, whereas, inreality, there are few species of this large family which arepartial to birds. Owls are either twilight or night feeders, atwhich time vermin or other small animals are chiefly about,and, therefore, in the economy of nature, they form the naturalfood of these birds.

In 1843 the Horticultural and Botanical Society of Van Diemen's Land was founded and became the Royal Society of Van Diemen's Land for Horticulture, Botany, and the Advancement of Science in 1844. In 1855 its name changed to Royal Society of Tasmania for Horticulture, Botany, and the Advancement of Science. In 1911 the name was shortened to Royal Society of Tasmania.